Lincolnwood Village Board of Trustees June 16 meeting
by CYRYL JAKUBOWSKI
The Lincolnwood Village Board of Trustees at its meeting June 16 approved variations that will allow construction of a Muslim mosque and teaching center on the site of the former Myron and Phil’s Restaurant, 3900 W. Devon Ave.
Sacred Learning Center plans to demolish the restaurant and construct a two-story building and a parking lot. The site will be used for five daily prayers, classrooms, after-school programs, evening and weekend lectures and office space.
Prayers will be held at dawn and during the day, with the final prayer 90 minutes after sunset. Classes will be held between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. daily and on weekends.
The variations allow the 31-space parking lot to be located in the front of the building featuring, perimeter landscaping less than 8 feet wide and a sign setback less than the required minimum of 10 feet.
Sacred Learning Center executive director Sayeed Shariff said at the board’s May 19 meeting that the organization has been meeting at a site near Lincoln and Peterson avenues for 15 years and that it would like to establish a home base. The center submitted petitions in favor granting the variations with the names of more than 600 people identified as residents of Lincolnwood.
Shariff said that he does not expect more than 20 people to attend the morning and afternoon services and that he expects 65 to 75 people to attend the evening service.
Also at the meeting, the village board referred to the Plan Commission a request by T-Mobile Central for a special use that will allow it to install a wireless communication facility on top of a Commonwealth Edison electric transmission tower in the ComEd right of way south of Pratt Avenue. That portion of the right of way is in the R-3 Residential Zoning District that does not allow wireless facilities.
The board also approved an ordinance amending the village code to reduce the number of members of the Economic Development Commission from nine to seven.
The trustees also approved the purchase of a 13-foot square umbrella and three 18-foot hexagonal umbrellas for $13,442.26 from Birdair for use at the Proesel Park swimming pool.
